


Stand By You

by MyeonandOnly



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Mild Language, Non-Graphic Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-04-24 11:04:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19171972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyeonandOnly/pseuds/MyeonandOnly
Summary: AU Zhang Yixing lives his life dangerously and one day, he meets someone who is interested in him.





	Stand By You

**Author's Note:**

> This is a fanfic that I worked on years ago based on a prompt.
> 
> Prompt: “An awkward hello and a painful goodbye”
> 
> Warnings: Major character death, violence, coarse language, brief sex scene.  

“Let me get this straight. The three of us are going to enter the clothing store across the street and each of us are going to steal one piece of clothing. And whoever manages to snatch the most expensive one wins. Am I following so far?” Sehun asks as soon as the three of them exited from the café they had lunch in.

“That’s right,” Yixing, the oldest of the three, answers before dropping his voice. “Keep your voice down. People might overhear.”

“Sorry hyung!” Sehun gives a sheepish look. “By the way, the losers will treat the winner, right? No matter what the winner demands?”

“Right again.”

“Why are you asking obvious questions, Sehun? This isn’t our first rodeo,” Tao slings his arm around Sehun’s shoulder. “Besides, it’s not like you’re going to win again.”

Sehun pushes Tao away in annoyance. “You tricked me last time! I wanted to go to Paris but you said to keep the demand to a reasonable budget! If I had known, I would be wearing designer jackets from Louis Vuitton right now!”

“You didn’t win fair and square anyway! You only won because-”

“Okay enough! Settle down, you two. We have to go now while it’s still the lunch rush. Come on,” Yixing leads the way and the three of them quietly enter the clothing store which is currently a hive of activity. Clothes are clumsily hung up on their hangers while some are strewn all over the floor. Shoppers are jostling in excitement and urgency as they push their shopping carts which are filled to the brim with clothing items. There are people screaming and shouting, and the workers are working doubly hard to break off quarrels before they escalate into fights.

A smile finds its way onto Yixing’s lips. This is the perfect. With a hot mess like this, they can definitely get away with stealing.

“Remember. One clothing item each. Meet at the back entrance in fifteen,” Yixing reminds his younger companions.

“Only fifteen minutes?” Sehun eyes Yixing in stunned disbelief. Tao’s horrified expression signals that he shares the same sentiments as Sehun.

“Fourteen minutes and 50 seconds now,” Yixing deadpans and with that, Sehun and Tao scurries off in opposite directions, getting lost in the crowd in an instant.

Smiling to himself, Yixing strides to the menswear section, avoiding the throngs of people in front of him. As expected, the aisle is populated with shoppers who are either admiring the clothes from afar or pressing them against their bodies. Not wanting to waste time, Yixing quickly searches for the most glamorous-looking item in the aisle and his eyes soon fall on a black leather double-breasted jacket. Jackpot.

Sauntering closer towards his targeted clothing item, Yixing realizes that it is the last one in stock. Lady Luck is truly shining on him. Yixing softly whistles to himself and regards his surroundings carefully before making a grab on the leather jacket. However, instead of the soft and delicate texture of leather, his hand comes into contact with another hand.

Yixing snaps his head and sees a pale-skinned man who is a few inches shorter than him and who is currently giving him a menacing scowl.

“Hey, let go! I saw this first!” the pale male tries to snatch the jacket away but Yixing refuses to give in either.

“No way! There are plenty of clothes for you to choose from! I doubt this is even your size!” Yixing gathers his strength and attempts to steal it away but this man’s grip is pretty strong in spite of his small size.

“You don’t understand! I need this because…” the man drops his voice to a harsh whisper. “I’m trying to steal it!”

Yixing pauses to give the other male an odd stare. “What?”

“You heard what I said! Now, give me the jacket unless you’re trying to steal it too!”

Instantly, Yixing averts his gaze and keeps silent, and regrets it a second later.

“So, you _are_ going to steal it too!” the man openly gasps.

Eyes widening, Yixing reaches out to cover the other male’s mouth. “Shush! Someone might hear you!”

From the corner of his eye, Yixing can see a blur of movement before it disappeared from his sight. Yixing lets out an exasperated sigh. Someone has already ran off to probably alert the employees about a pair of shoplifters in the menswear aisle.

“Look. I’m going to tell you just once. Give me the jacket. You can go steal another piece of clothing. Then the both of us can go our separate ways and be happy. Got that?” Yixing grits his teeth.

“Wow! I can’t believe that it’s my first time shoplifting and I ran into someone who’s experienced in stealing!” the man says giddily, still not releasing his hold on the jacket. “At least, I think you’re experienced. What other crimes have you committed? Home invasion? Assault? Vandalism? Please, teach me your ways!”

“What the hell are you babbling about?” Yixing frowns and suddenly, he feels a hand clapping on his shoulder. Yixing whips his head to find the hand to belong to a tall burly man with a nametag that said ‘security’.

“We have reason to believe that the two of you are about to shoplift. Come with us and do not resist or we will have no choice but to use force.”

Yixing purses his lips and shoots a glare at the pale male who is also restrained by another security guard and is currently giving him a sheepish smile.

* * *

“Nice to meet you! My name is Junmyeon!” the pale male offers his hand for a handshake but Yixing blatantly ignores it. Being stuck in the manager’s officer with an over-excited man who has a concerningly huge interest in crime is definitely not how Yixing wants to spend his afternoon. Especially when there is a high probability that the manager would press charges since the both of them had been caught red-handed. Speaking of which, where is the manager anyway?

“I’m sure you’ve stolen a lot of stuff prior to this! Have you been caught before? Or is this your first time? Oh no!” Junmyeon gasps, his hands covering his mouth. “Don’t tell me I’ve ruined your streak of not getting caught?”

When Yixing spares a brief glare his way, Junmyeon ducks his head in response. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it. I guess I got too excited.”

Junmyeon lets out a soft sigh. “I tried to shoplift just now because I thought by doing so and by getting caught, my father would finally take notice of me and personally bail me out. I tried so many methods in getting his attention before but it’s always Choongjae-hyung who comes to my rescue. And I bet it’s Choongjae-hyung again this time too. Hmph.”

Yixing stays silent as he rolls his eyes hard. So, this Junmyeon guy is also spoilt brat who is crying over Daddy’s lack of attention. Ugh. What an insufferable guy.

Just then, the door opens and Yixing sits up straight in his chair. A tall, lanky male wearing a uniform with a ‘manager’ tag pinned to it and a taller male wearing a black turtleneck with a blazer over it enter the office.

“Hello,” the manager gives a forced smile at Junmyeon and Yixing. “Good news, I won’t be pressing any charges. However, I would appreciate it if the two of you won’t step inside my store ever again. You guys may leave.”

Yixing watches as the turtleneck male throws a professional smile at the manager before directing a glare at Junmyeon and forcefully pulling the pale male up from his seat, dragging him away. This guy must be the ‘Choongjae-hyung’ Junmyeon was babbling about just now.

Once the three of them have exited the store, the turtleneck guy releases his grip on Junmyeon who hisses in pain as he rubs the sore spot on his arm.

“Choongjae-hyung, you don’t have to be so rough!” Junmyeon pouts.

Choongjae shakes his head. “You’re lucky that the manager was kind enough to not press any charges against you!”

“Of course, he wouldn’t. You used your ‘persuasive methods’, didn’t you?” Junmyeon retorts, using air quotes in emphasis.

Choongjae proceeds to pull Junmyeon’s ear roughly. “Don’t you ever pull such a stunt in the name of getting your father’s attention ever again! You could’ve gotten a criminal offence if it weren’t for me saving your ass yet again!”

“To be fair, that is part of your job description,” Junmyeon quips.

Behind them, Yixing merely gives a small shake of his head. While he finds them bickering with each other annoying, at the same time, he feels envious of them. Envious of the relationship they have. Just like how he feels about Tao and Sehun. On that note, where are the two anyway?

“Come, let’s get you home,” Choongjae walks down the stairs while Junmyeon trails slowly behind.

“Hyung!” Yixing hears a familiar yell and whips his head around to see Sehun and Tao running towards him, each of them holding a hanger of a flannel shirt in different colours. And judging by the evidently small size of the shirt, Yixing does not have too hard from which section the two youngsters stole the shirts from.

“I managed to nab this sweet-looking flannel shirt in the children’s section when no one was looking and arrived at the back entrance a few minutes earlier than planned. And then Tao appears a few seconds later and shows up with the same flannel shirt but in blue colour. So, now we are both tied with the same price and…wait…where are your stolen clothing item, hyung?” Sehun frowns at the fact that Yixing is evidently empty-handed.

“Did you even steal anything, Yixing-ge?” Tao asks carefully.

Yixing gives a shake of his head. “Nope I didn’t. It’s all thanks to that spoilt brat over there that I got caught.”

“Who are you calling a ‘spoilt brat’?” Junmyeon scowls at Yixing from the middle step of the stairs.

“Anyway, I’ll treat the both of you. But keep it under 20,000 won. Come on, let’s go,” Yixing tilts his head at the two youngsters to follow him.

“Guess it’s going to be bubble tea yet again,” Sehun sighs and Tao slings his arm around Sehun’s shoulder as they trail behind their leader.

As Yixing heads to his car, Junmyeon trots along beside him.

“I want to join you.”

Yixing frowns. It is not even phrased as a question. Nor as a request. This guy must be used to getting things his way. Well, he is definitely not getting what he wants right now.

“You know, it’s all thanks to me that the manager didn’t press any charges against the both of us!” Junmyeon presses.

“So?”

“So, you have to repay me!” Junmyeon shrieks. “Or I’m going to walk back to my bodyguard and convince him to force the manager to slap you with a hefty fine. And maybe a prison sentence.”

“What the fuck?” Yixing searches Junmyeon’s face for any signs of humour but no, he looks dead serious.

“Fine! Do whatever you want!” Yixing opens the car door and slams it shut.

“Stupid spoilt brat,” Yixing grumbles as he starts the engine without bothering to wait for Sehun and Tao.

Sensing that their leader is in a pretty bad mood, Tao and Sehun quickly climb into the backseats of Yixing’s car, squeezed next to Junmyeon.

Yixing drives his car into the busy street, muttering colourful curses under his breath.

Meanwhile, Choongjae is leaning against his car while smoking a cigarette.

“What’s taking the kid so damn long?”

Choongjae then feels a soft vibration in his pocket and fishes out his phone.

‘Hanging out with a cool guy! Don’t bother waiting! <3 -JM’

Choongjae smacks his own forehead.

_‘This kid is seriously going to be the death of me…’_

* * *

“So, what crimes have you guys committed?” Junmyeon tosses the question casually. Within the first couple of minutes of Yixing driving, Junmyeon introduced himself to Sehun and Tao, and learnt of their names, including Yixing’s.

“Nothing much. Just some robbery here and there. Some fights that we got involved in to pass the time,” Tao answers as he sips his cup of bubble tea.

“Wow! That’s so cool! I bet you guys have kicked a lot of asses!” Junmyeon is wide-eyed with amazement.

Sehun spares him a gentle smile. “You can say that.”

Junmyeon tilts his head a little and eyes the bandages around Yixing’s hands that are gripping the steering wheel.

“We mostly follow Yixing-ge’s lead though. We don’t get ourselves caught in anything dangerous,” Tao adds. “Though Yixing-ge tricked a big-shot gang leader of his money once.”

“Really?” Junmyeon probes but he is not getting any answer after a brief glare from Yixing through the rear-view mirror instantly shuts Tao up.

Junmyeon pauses for a beat before leaning his body forward. “I have a proposition for you, Yixing.”

When Yixing stays silent, Junmyeon continues, “How about in return for money, you’ll kidnap me and stage a high-profile ransom case? That is bound to attract my father’s attention!”

“I’m not interested in petty cash,” is what Yixing simply responds with.

“You know you can get yourself a sleek-looking leather jacket with the money,” Junmyeon grins, hoping that Yixing would take the bait.

“I’m not interested in material possessions,” Yixing answers.

Junmyeon puffs his cheeks in annoyance. “Oh come on! Do something useful with your life for once!”

Abruptly, Yixing stops his car and swivels his head to glare at Junmyeon.

“I’ve had enough of you, you fucking spoilt brat. Get the fuck out of my car!”

“Were you offended by what I said? I didn’t mean it I swear-”

“GET. OUT.” Yixing emphasizes each word, silently seething in anger.

“Whatever,” Junmyeon rolls his eyes and exits the car. In an instant, Yixing drives away as if he is too eager to leave Junmyeon there. Junmyeon eyes the rows of dirty and run-down buildings behind him, and the dark, foreboding stores with broken signs and doors across from him. Not to mention, the sun has already set by now and the darkness is seeping in between the buildings, rendering an ominous atmosphere. How the hell is he going to get out of here?

Without warning, a hand roughly grabs Junmyeon’s shoulder and spins him around, and Junmyeon is met with a sickening smile of a tall adult male.

“Want to have some fun with me and my boys?”

* * *

“Yixing-ge, I think we should go back.”

Yixing stays silent as usual.

Tao sighs, “Ge, you left him in a pretty shady neighbourhood. He might get beaten up!”

“Or worse!” Sehun adds.

Yixing regards the genuinely concerned looks of the two youngsters’ face and lets out a deep sigh.

“Fine,” Yixing says before he drives his car back to where he left Junmyeon.

* * *

Junmyeon slaps the tall male across the face.

“Get your filthy hands off of me, you pervert!”

The tall male holds his hand out when his group of friends begin to step forward.

“Do you even know who I am?” the tall male towers over Junmyeon.

“Frankly, I don’t,” Junmyeon answers bravely.

The tall male snaps his fingers and at once, all of them advance on Junmyeon.

Junmyeon makes a quick work out of all of them. He reaches out to grab the hand of the first guy who aims a punch on him and twists his hand before throwing him a good three feet away to the gravel. With a couple of well-timed roundhouse kicks, Junmyeon manages to knock down two more guys. Junmyeon silently thanks Choongjae for forcing him to take karate lessons even though he tends to skip classes most of the time. The remaining attackers seem to have a sense of Junmyeon’s fighting strategy so they keep a clear distance away from the pale male.

Exhilarated by his taste of his first ever real fight, Junmyeon runs to them and starts throwing punches randomly, hoping they would hit someone. However, he feels his left hand being gripped harshly, stopping his movements and before he knows it, he is pinned down to the brick wall by three men.

The leader stalks towards the restrained Junmyeon like a prey and runs his rough, calloused thumb along Junmyeon’s bottom lip.

“Want to have some fun with him, boys?” the tall male has a sardonic smile on his face as his lackeys nod their heads in agreement.

“Get the fuck away from him, you bastards!”

Without warning, the leader of the group receives a harsh kick to the chest, throwing him backwards and knocking the wind out of him. His lackeys quickly release their hold on Junmyeon and start running towards the newcomer with war-like cries.

“Come on, Junmyeon,” Tao and Sehun grabs Junmyeon and leads the pale male to pavement near where Yixing’s car is parked.

Junmyeon watches in awe as Yixing takes care of the entire group of strong adult males single-handedly without breaking a single sweat. Before he knows it, all the hostile men are lying on the ground, groaning and moaning in pain.

“Let’s get out of here,” Yixing says as he stretches his knuckles, to which Sehun and Tao nod in agreement. Before they could even enter the car, they hear a croaked voice from behind them.

“Zhang Yixing,” the leader of the group spits out. “The Dragon is coming after your ass. Words in the street say that he’s here. And he’s searching for you. The Dragon never forgets.”

Yixing ignores him and quickly heads inside his car, the other three silently following suit. Silence lapses in the car until Junmyeon breaks it.

“Thank you,” Junmyeon gives a grateful nod at Sehun and Tao before resting his gaze at Yixing. “for returning and saving me back there.”

None of them say anything but the silence reassures Junmyeon that he is surrounded by strangers who care deeply about his safety and who probably do not expect anything in return.

“Yixing, I’m sorry for the offensive things I’ve said earlier. I was out of line. I hardly know you and yet I just ran my mouth off and didn’t pause to think about how you’d feel. But even so, you still came back to rescue me,” Junmyeon feels his eyes getting wet and his hand shoots up to wipe them. “I’m truly sorry.”

“Forget it. It’s all in the past,” Yixing says. He notes Junmyeon’s tearful expression through the rear-view mirror before his lips curl into a small smile. “And don’t stain my seats with your tears. I don’t believe they are waterproof.”

Sehun and Tao puff out a laugh while Junmyeon gives a grateful smile in response.

“I’ll make a mental note. And uh…” Junmyeon pauses as his face flushes a pink shade. “You were pretty cool back there, Yixing!”

“I’ve always been cool,” Yixing juts his chin up while smirking.

“Yixing-ge, your dimples are showing,” Tao points out.

“Hyung is just happy that he gained a fan,” Sehun chimes in.

“Shut up, you two,” Yixing chides but the youngest two are too busy giggling to themselves to care.

Leaning over, Junmyeon whispers to Yixing, “They’re not entirely wrong. I’ll stand by your side forever. I’m even willing to follow you till the ends of this Earth.”

“What the- Stop spouting nonsense! Sit back and put on your seatbelt. Geez!”

Soon, Yixing feels heat rushing to his face and his grip on the steering wheel tightens.

_‘Why the hell am I blushing?’_

* * *

Yixing’s house is located on the tenth floor of a multi-storey apartment building. Not only is it small and cosy, it is also quiet and peaceful. Everyone minds their own business there, including the landlord. As soon as Yixing drops Sehun, Tao and Junmyeon in his house, Yixing heads out to leave before Junmyeon notices and drills him with multiple questions. Even though Sehun and Tao are troublemakers when left to their own devices, he trusts that the both of them will keep Junmyeon occupied and prevent the latter from messing up his house.

As usual, Yixing arrives at Woojoo University right on the dot, the beautiful moonlight shining on the open carpark. Muscle memory kicking in, Yixing heads to the chemistry lab using the all too familiar route that most students and teachers probably have no idea exists.

“Mr. Lin,” Yixing greets his former professor.

“Yixing! Perfect timing!” Mr. Lin lifts his head up to give a relieved smile to the younger. “I need you to help me mix some chemicals and observe whether the reactions are correct. I left my notebook back at home so I forgot some of the basic ones.”

“What are you going to do without me, Mr Lin?” Yixing shakes his head good-naturedly. As he handles the chemicals, he asks, “Is this for your current research?”

“Yeah. Me and the research team are in the midst of modifying the antibiotics such that it can effectively cure acute appendicitis without requiring the removal of the appendix.”

“How’s the progress?”

“It’s…going along just fine,” Mr. Lin shifts his glance at Yixing. “Though it would have been much faster if you were part of the team.”

“Mr Lin…” Yixing closes his eyes, sighing.

“Yixing, you are a brilliant young man. Maybe you should consider-”

“We’ve already had this conversation countless times, Mr Lin.”

“Why are you being so stubborn, Yixing? Just because you dropped out, it doesn’t mean you can never pick up where you left off.”

“It’s no use. Even if I finish my education, no one is ever going to hire an ex-convict.”

Silence then lapses between the pair. For a few minutes, no one talks until Mr. Lin lets out a quiet breath.

“So, what are you up to now? Still playing Robin Hood?” When he receives no answer, Mr. Lin presses on. “Is that what you want to do your whole life?”

“Of course not!” Yixing quips. “…but it fills the time.”

“Yixing, I’ve told you a dozen times. What you’re doing right now is not only illegal but also dangerous. You’re going to die one day. Especially after you ticked off the most fearsome gang leader in South Korea.”

“Thanks for the concern, Mr. Lin but I think I’ll be fine.”

Yixing carries out the finishing touches and goes to wash his hands in the sink. “All done, Mr. Lin. I’m going to take home some of these chemicals.”

“Help yourself,” Mr. Lin sighs. “Thanks for your help.”

It takes Yixing several minutes to pack the chemicals safely in a box.

“I’m going to head out first, Mr. Lin.”

“Good night, Yixing.”

* * *

Once Yixing steps inside his house, he is relieved to see that the furniture is intact and is pretty much the same before he left. He enters the living room and sees Tao and Sehun in their underwear while Junmyeon is fully-clothed and they are all holding cards in their hands. It does not take a genius to figure out that they are all playing strip poker.

“Royal Flush! Woo! I won!” Junmyeon raises his hands in triumph. He spots Yixing leaving the kitchen with a cup in his hand.

“Yixing, you’re back! Where did you go?” Junmyeon asks excitedly.

“Work,” Yixing takes a sip from his cup.

“Your place is so much fun! I wouldn’t mind staying here every day!”

Yixing coughs up his drink. “Let’s not get ourselves carried away here.”

“I took a small tour of your house and I love every bit of it!” Junmyeon says, excitement brimming his voice. He picks a photo frame by the small television set and asks, “Are these your parents? Where are they?”

Without warning, the photo frame is snatched from his hands and Junmyeon is met with a very livid Yixing.

“Get your hands away from my personal stuff! Don’t you understand privacy?” Yixing shouts at Junmyeon.

“I’m sorry, Yixing! I didn’t mean it!” Junmyeon attempts to placate Yixing but the latter reaches out to grab the heavy seat cushion from the couch and throws it at Sehun and Tao, hitting them both hard on the shoulder.

“Don’t you two have summer classes tomorrow! Go home!” Yixing barks at the youngest two and storms off to his room before slamming the door shut.

“Don’t mind him. Yixing-ge just gets sensitive when his parents are mentioned. I’m sure he’ll be feeling okay the next day,” Tao assures Junmyeon.

“We’ll see you soon, Junmyeon-hyung,” Sehun smiles at the pale male before leaving with Tao in tow.

“I really should think before I speak,” Junmyeon sighs. “I need to cheer Yixing up somehow.”

Soon, an idea strikes Junmyeon.

“I got it!”

* * *

The next morning, a fresh aroma wafts into Yixing’s bedroom, rousing the male from his sleep. After stretching his arms, Yixing pushes back the blankets and swings his legs over the edge of his bed. The pleasant aroma seems to originate from the kitchen and Yixing nearly jumps out of his skin when he hears a loud enthusiastic greeting.

“Good morning, Yixing!” Junmyeon says brightly. “Did you have a good sleep?”

Yixing grunts in response and he spots a plate full of food on the table. “What’s this?”

“Your breakfast!” Junmyeon chirps. “It’s a three-egg omelette with hash brown and roasted bacon! I just used whatever ingredients you had in your refrigerator.”

Yixing does not remember the last time he visited the supermarket but shrugs it away. His stomach is growling and he cannot take it anymore.

“It’s delicious,” Yixing admits after taking a few bites of his breakfast.

“That’s great!” Junmyeon is relieved. He fidgets before he speaks up again. “I’m sorry, Yixing. I didn’t mean to make you angry yesterday.”

“Forget it,” Yixing gives a small smile to the pale male. “Besides, many people have told me that I have an anger management problem.”

Glancing at the wall clock, Yixing tells Junmyeon, “Anyway, it’s time for you to go home now.”

“But I want to stay here!” Junmyeon exclaims.

“I’m sorry Junmyeon but this isn’t a hotel. Besides, I had no idea you were even staying over,” Yixing wipes his mouth before standing up. “Come on, I’m driving you home now.”

Junmyeon grumbles to himself but stands up anyway.

Unsurprisingly, Junmyeon lives in a humongous and lavish mansion. Yixing stops his car right in front of an impressive set of iron front gates.

“This is it,” Yixing says.

“Thanks for driving me home,” Junmyeon pauses before smiling at Yixing. “I know my words are going to mean nothing to you but I find you to be a really nice person even when you appear brooding and cold outside all the time. And I really enjoyed spending time together with you even though it was pretty short.”

“No problem,” Yixing calmly supplies but inside, he feels his heart beating a mile a minute.

Junmyeon punches the code on the number pad on the wall next to the entrance and waits for the front gates to fully open before waving his hands goodbye at Yixing.

After returning the wave, Yixing finds himself smiling at Junmyeon’s back as the latter is walking towards his house. Catching himself in the act, Yixing coughs in embarrassment before driving away.

* * *

After taking a shower and changing into a fresh set of clothes, Junmyeon hears a soft knock on his bedroom door.

“Come in.”

“Ah Junmyeon! You’re finally home! Where did you go? You didn’t even spend the night here!” Choongjae starts to scold the second he enters Junmyeon’s room.

“I already told you! I went to a cool guy’s place!”

Choongjae sighs exasperatedly. “Your father was worried sick about you!”

Junmyeon rolls his eyes. “Lies. I bet he had no idea I wasn’t even here last night.”

Choongjae chooses not to say anything and Junmyeon is convinced by his bodyguard’s silence that he is indeed right.

“Your father wants to see you, Junmyeon. Right now.”

Upon hearing that, a trickle of fear and anxiety worms through Junmyeon’s stomach.

“Am I in trouble?” Junmyeon gulps loudly.

“Let’s find out,” Choongjae deadpans and guides the younger male to Mr. Kim’s office.

Once Junmyeon steps inside his father’s office, he already feels suffocated and pivots his heel to leave but of course, his bodyguard is blocking his only way out.

“Hi Junmyeon,” Mr. Kim places his elbows on his mahogany desk and steeples his fingers together. “I hear from Choongjae that you almost got arrested yesterday?”

“Choongjae-hyung is spreading lies again, isn’t he? I was actually just doing some window-shopping and-”

“Junmyeon, you better not lie to me,” Mr. Kim warns.

“Fine! I tried to shoplift because I thought by getting arrested, you’d come down to the police station personally and bail me out!” Junmyeon confesses.

“Junmyeon…” Mr. Kim massages his temples. “I’ve told you so many times. Appa is really busy and he has no time to deal with your childish shenanigans. And please don’t trouble Choongjae too. It’s tiring for him to keep chasing you around and keeping you out of trouble. Why can’t you be like the other boys and spend your time playing video games? If you want, I can get you all the latest games with a snap of a finger.”

“I don’t want to play video games!” Junmyeon exclaims.

“Fine. Right now you’re having your term break, right? Do you want to visit any country for a short vacation? I can arrange a private jet for you no problem and Choongjae will keep you company.”

“This is the problem with you! You think everything can be solved with money! I just want to spend some time with you! Is that so hard?” Junmyeon retorts angrily, his voice rising steadily in volume.

“Junmyeon, don’t you dare raise your voice at me!” Mr. Kim warns, standing up.

Junmyeon cannot take it anymore. “This is why Mother died! She died because of _you_!”

_SMACK!_

The stinging pain of his cheek is accompanied by the ringing in his ears. Did his father really slap him?

“GO TO YOUR ROOM!” Mr. Kim orders as he points to the door.

Junmyeon rests a hand on his cheek and glares at his father. “I hate you!”

Junmyeon storms out of his father’s office and makes sure to shut his bedroom door loudly, the sound of the slam echoing in the hallways.

Mr. Kim lets out a sigh of frustration. “Youngsters nowadays…”

* * *

It has been hours since dinnertime but Choongjae feels worried about Junmyeon. He had already placed a tray of food in front of Junmyeon’s door and he hopes that the young male has helped himself to dinner. Choongjae sighs. True, the young male did cross the line earlier but he definitely did not deserve to be slapped. And his father is at fault too. Why is it so hard to set aside some time to spend time with your own son? Isn’t it really obvious that your son is resorting to desperate means just so that you would notice him and realize that you’ve been neglecting him - your only child? Working in this house really drives Choongjae crazy sometimes.

“Junmyeon?” Choongjae knocks softly on Junmyeon’s door. “I’ve prepared some ice cream for you. Vanilla – your favourite. Can I come in?”

Taking the silence as consent, Choongjae opens the door and sucks in a breath as he sees Junmyeon’s blankets all wrapped around a tiny body and a pillow pressed to the side. To his relief, he sees a tray filled with empty and dirty plates so at least Junmyeon had some dinner.

_‘Poor Junmyeon. He must still be upset about his father’s outburst. Hopefully this ice cream will cheer him up!’_

Choongjae walks towards the bed and takes a seat on the edge.

“Junmyeon, wake up,” Choongjae says as he gently shakes Junmyeon awake. “I know what your father did earlier is way out of line but you can’t keep moping around like this!”

Choongjae proceeds to shake the male more vigorously this time and to his surprise, the blankets slip off to reveal a thick bolster hidden underneath it. Panic surging through him, Choongjae searches the entire room before checking the entire house. Junmyeon is nowhere to be found. And most of his clothes are gone as well. There is only one conclusion left.

“Damn it. That boy ran away again. I expected this to happen,” Choongjae sighs. “He always runs away when he is faced with problems like this.”

* * *

Yixing is about to head to sleep when he suddenly hears loud, repeated knocks on the front door. Now who the hell would be visiting at this late hour?

Opening the door, Yixing sighs, “Junmyeon, what are you doing here?”

Without even providing an answer, Junmyeon slips inside Yixing’s house. “I was just thinking about you! I feel like you and I have a connection.”

Yixing cuts to the chase. “You come in here with an obvious mark on your face and you expect me to believe that bullshit?”

Hand shooting up to rest on his bruised cheek, Junmyeon averts his gaze. “It’s a pretty long story.”

“Then start telling it. Come on, take a seat,” Yixing offers before he grabs a seat on his couch as well. Junmyeon dumps his backpack of clothes onto the floor before following suit.

“Once I arrived home, my father scolded me for stealing. I did it because I wanted his attention. Then he told me he could get any video games that I want and arrange a private jet for any country I desire to visit. So, I lost it. I brought up my late mother and blamed him for her death. And then he slapped me.”

“That’s some painful slap,” Yixing winces.

“It’s nothing,” Junmyeon shrugs.

Yixing wrings his hands. “I know this is none of my business but why are you so desperate to get your father’s attention? Is it really worth it to commit a criminal offence just to get him to notice you?”

“I don’t know honestly,” Junmyeon shakes his head. “Prior to shoplifting, I tried a number of methods like breaking into the principal’s office and pouring oil on his desk, puncturing the tyres of the principal’s bicycle and replacing his newspapers with porn magazines but all I got was a suspension for all of them and it’s always my bodyguard who came to see the principal with me. So, I decided to try out something else.”

“Wow, you sound like you have a deep grudge against your principal,” Yixing is amazed.

“There was a rumour spreading around that the principal beats up mischievous students so I was wondering if that was true,” Junmyeon replies. “I didn’t get beaten up though.”

“I see. How about your late mother?”

“Ever since my father was appointed CEO in his telecommunications company, he has become a workaholic. Each day, he’ll leave the house before the both of us wake up and arrive home when we are both asleep. He hardly spends time with us. Then one day, he informs us that he’ll be coming home early. My mother was ecstatic when she found out. She quickly left the house to run to the supermarket to buy groceries and ingredients to whip up a feast. She was in such a hurry to get home that she drove past a red light and then her car collided with a truck. The truck driver survived but she didn’t. Ever since then, I blame my father for my mother’s death.”

Junmyeon breaks into small sobs as he recounts the past. He feels himself being hugged by a pair of strong, comforting arms.

“Hey, don’t cry. I’m sorry for making you remembering that awful past, alright?” Yixing says softly. “I know it’s easy to blame your father for your mother’s death but pointing fingers would not get you anywhere. I’m sure he blames himself too.”

Wiping his tears, Junmyeon smiles at Yixing. “Thanks. You can let me go now.”

Blushing slightly, Yixing releases the other male from the hug and rubs the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“Anyway, I’m sure your mother won’t be happy with you risking your future by committing criminal offences. So, don’t go stealing again in the name of catching your father’s attention.”

“I don’t think I’ll be trying to get his attention anymore,” Junmyeon admits. “And I don’t think I want to go back home and face him ever again.”

Yixing lets out a soft sigh. “Tell you what. I’ll let you stay here for as long as you want. But on the condition that you don’t stir up any trouble for me.”

Junmyeon gasps in surprise. “Really? Thank you so much, Yixing!”

“Sure no problem-oof!” Yixing is not prepared for the bone-crushing hug by Junmyeon. Before he could even return the hug, Junmyeon lets go and starts unpacking his belongings.

“I promise I’ll be an awesome housemate!”

Yixing finds himself smiling at Junmyeon and this time, he does not feel too bothered by it.

* * *

An all too familiar pleasant aroma wafts into his room once Yixing steps out from his shower. Today’s breakfast is chocolate pancakes with powdered sugar served with a cup of fresh orange juice.

“Eat up! I’ll be your personal chef for as long as I live here!” Junmyeon chirps.

“Cute apron,” Yixing eyes the tiny black bunny prints on Junmyeon’s pink apron. Junmyeon covers his blushing face in embarrassment.

“Thanks for the food,” Yixing prepares to leave and he feels his arm being gripped.

“Wait! Can you please bring me along?” Junmyeon begs.

“You can’t. I’m going out to work,” Yixing shakes himself free from Junmyeon’s grip. “And I don’t have time to babysit you.”

“You’d better let me tag along or I’ll wreck this house!” Junmyeon threatens.

Yixing tries to protest but all that is coming out are little wheezing noises.

“Fine!” Yixing relents and ignores the loud cheers behind him. “But you’d better behave yourself and not cause me any trouble!”

“Trouble is my middle name!” Junmyeon freezes when Yixing directs a glare at him. “I’m just kidding!”

* * *

Yixing drives them both into a derelict warehouse district where it is rife with an uninhabited swath of empty factories and graffiti.

“Close your mouth, Junmyeon,” Yixing shakes his head. “For goodness sake, this place is full of abandoned buildings. It’s not even amazing!”

“But it IS amazing! I feel like I’m part of an exclusive escapade,” Junmyeon marvels at his surroundings.

Yixing opens the door to an uninhabited lab and drops the box of chemicals he has gotten from his professor on the table.

“What’s your major, Junmyeon?” Yixing asks.

“Chemistry.”

“Perfect! I’ve asked Tao and Sehun to be my personal assistants once but they had no idea what I’m asking them to do most of the time,” Yixing pauses. “All the time actually.”

“What do you want me to do?” Junmyeon is curious.

Following Yixing’s directions, Junmyeon helps to mix some chemicals together before pouring them into multiple small syringes. Afterwards, the both of them placed the syringes into a plastic case before placing it inside Yixing’s bag.

As Yixing starts up the car, Junmyeon asks, “Where are we going now?”

Yixing merely gives him a dimpled smile before driving them away. After some time, the car stops in front of an orphanage and Junmyeon follows Yixing out of the car. Once they step inside the orphanage, small children start to gather around them and cry out Yixing’s name.

“Yixing-oppa!”

“You came back!”

“We miss you!”

“I missed you too!” Yixing cries out happily as he hugs the huddle of children.

A small girl with cute pigtails notices Junmyeon’s presence. “Yixing-oppa, is he your boyfriend?”

Yixing splutters in shock while Junmyeon feels his face redden automatically.

“How about we all head to the medical room now so that we can start giving you all your flu shots?” Yixing guides them away, but not without giving Junmyeon a wink first. That action only makes Junmyeon blush more furiously.

While administering the flu shots, Junmyeon slowly realizes that the chemicals they were mixing earlier are the formula for the flu vaccination. Junmyeon wonders if Yixing has a license for this and voices out his question after giving the last flu shot.

“This orphanage cannot afford to give proper medical services to the orphans so I decided to help out. And no, I’m not licensed but I have experience helping my father administer flu shots before. And he is a licensed doctor. Well, was,” Yixing adds the last sentence as an afterthought and leaves before Junmyeon can ask any more questions.

“Yixing-oppa, please read us a story before you leave!” a small girl in a red dress holds out a book to Yixing.

“Sure sure,” Yixing accepts the book and the little children erupts into loud cheers before sitting in front of Yixing. Junmyeon smiles as he watches Yixing read them the story about a prince saving a princess from a dragon and before he knows it, Yixing closes the book.

“Did you enjoy the story?” Yixing asks.

“We love it!” the children chorus.

A hand shoots up. “Can I ask a question, Yixing-hyung? The story said the prince and princess kissed each other before living happily ever after. What is ‘kiss’? Can we eat it?”

“Well…” Yixing starts and he notices Junmyeon standing not far from him. He reaches out and grab Junmyeon’s hand before dragging the pale male towards him.

“This is how a kiss looks like.”

Junmyeon is not given any warning before he is dipped in a dramatic hold.

“Yixing what-”

A pair of soft lips meets his parted ones, and Junmyeon widens his eyes in shock. Junmyeon feels one side of his face being caressed gently as the kiss deepens. Shyly, Junmyeon kisses him back and Yixing steadies him to his feet before releasing him.

“ _That_ is what a ‘kiss’ means. And no, Daeul, it can’t be eaten,” Yixing laughs as the small boy who gives a sheepish look.

“Yixing-oppa has a boyfriend!” the girl in the red dress starts chanting and to Junmyeon’s horror, the rest of the children joins in.

“Bye bye!” Yixing waves them all goodbye as he grabs Junmyeon by the hand and leads him outside.

During the car ride back home, Junmyeon touches his lips and smiles softly to himself. Beside him, Yixing’s ears are burning red, and remains unnoticed.

* * *

At night, Junmyeon start to fix the blankets on the couch when Yixing grabs his hands to stop him.

“From today onwards, you won’t be sleeping on the couch anymore.”

“Then, where will I be sleeping?”

“My bed of course,” Yixing smirks.

“W-What! No way! I-I can’t do that!” Junmyeon is flustered.

“Why not? I basically stole your first kiss. I’ll have to take responsibility for that now.”

“H-How did you know?” Junmyeon feels his face reddening.

“It’s _so_ obvious,” Yixing laughs, and the sound is so soothing to Junmyeon’s ears. “Come on, don’t be shy.”

Yixing notices Junmyeon trembling slightly when they are sitting on his bed side by side.

“Didn’t you say once that you want to stand by my side forever?” Yixing teases the pale male.

“I don’t mean it literally!” Junmyeon blushes.

“Relax. I won’t do anything to you while you’re asleep,” Yixing pauses before wiggling his eyebrows at Junmyeon. “Not yet anyway.”

Junmyeon shrieks, pulling the blanket to cover his entire head and hiding his smile when he hears Yixing laughing at him.

* * *

Days go by and before Junmyeon knows it, a couple of weeks has passed since he started staying with Yixing. The Chinese male has no qualms bringing Junmyeon everywhere he goes now.

Junmyeon’s eyes widen when they stop at Woojoo University. “Why are we visiting our school?”

“You study here?” Yixing is met with a nod. “Such a coincidence.”

The coincidence does not end there.

“Junmyeon?” Mr. Lin looks surprised.

“You two know each other?” Yixing questions.

“Yeah. I have given lectures about polymer chemistry to Junmyeon before. What a small world!” Mr. Lin hugs Junmyeon.

“Small world indeed,” Yixing comments as he peels Junmyeon away from Mr. Lin.

“Mr. Lin is a really great professor!” Junmyeon adds.

“I bet he is…” Yixing crosses his arms and feels a strange sensation in his body.

“Yixing actually used to attend this university,” Mr. Lin ignores the pointed glare that Yixing is giving him.

“Really? What happened?” Junmyeon asks, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“He dropped out. Didn’t he tell you?”

“No, he didn’t. Why did he drop out?”

“It’s not my story to tell.”

“Mr. Lin, I respect you as my former professor but can you please shut up?” Yixing scowls.

“It’d be really awesome if we attend the same university together though!” Junmyeon adds.

“Let’s not forget what we originally came here for,” Yixing quickly grabs two boxes of chemicals and unceremoniously dumps one into Junmyeon’s arms before bolting off.

* * *

“Yixing, did I do something wrong?”

“What are you talking about?” Yixing focuses his gaze in front of him as he drives.

“This is what I’m referring to!” Junmyeon sighs exasperatedly. “Ever since we left the university, you never look me in the eye!”

Yixing pulls his gaze away from the road to briefly fix Junmyeon with a glance. “Here I’m looking at you now. Happy?”

“I have a feeling that you’re jealous,” Junmyeon says.

“ _Jealous_?” Shit. Was he that obvious?

“Yeah you even forcefully pulled me and Mr. Lin apart when we hugged. And when I complimented Mr. Lin, you had a sour look on your face. If that does not scream jealousy, I don’t know what is.”

“Fine! I was jealous!” Yixing admits. There is no point beating around the bush here.

“Why?”

“Because I like you!” Yixing blurts out.

“What?” Junmyeon gasps.

“I mean-” Yixing is about to reply when he spots the police lights in the side view mirror. “Shit! I have to pull over.”

Junmyeon frowns, “Were you speeding?”

“Nope. This policeman just has a hate boner for me,” Yixing replies and Junmyeon puffs out a laugh.

Lowering down his car window, Yixing greets the policeman, “Hello. Officer Jongin. How’s your day?”

Officer Jongin gives him a wry smile. “You’d better not be up to any criminal activity here.”

“Now why would you think that?” Yixing asks, even though he already knows the answer.

“Once a criminal, always a criminal,” Jongin spots Junmyeon and throws a flirtatious smile at the pale male. “Who’s that pretty boy?”

“He’s none of your business,” Yixing shuts him down.

“You aren’t kidnapping him, are you?”

“I’m not. And I’m not doing anything illegal. Can you let us go now? We have other things to do,” Yixing is starting to grow impatient.

“Come on, what’s the rush? I bet he’s single,” Jongin makes some kissing noises at Junmyeon. “Hey baby~”

Junmyeon gives a look of disgust.

“Junmyeon is off the market. He is my boyfriend! So, go away!” Yixing frowns at the tanned male.

“You’re lying,” Jongin is not convinced. “Prove that you two are dating.”

“Very well then,” Yixing pulls Junmyeon closer and smashes his lips together with Junmyeon. Yixing smiles into the kiss when he hears Jongin gasp loudly behind him.

“Okay you’ve made your point. Sorry to bother you,” Jongin hurriedly enters his car and speeds away.

Yixing hears some heavy pants beside him. “I’m sorry for catching you off guard. That’s the only way to get Jongin off our tail.”

“No worries I get it,” Junmyeon pauses to catch his breath. “Yixing, did you feel anything when kissing me?”

“No,” Yixing quickly answers.

“Your ears are super red though,” Junmyeon points out.

“Fine! I felt like a spark of electricity coursing through me! Satisfied?”

“Very,” Junmyeon smiles. “I like you too, Yixing.”

Startled, Yixing says, “Why are you saying that all of a sudden?”

“Just now before we got pulled over, you said you like me. Well, I’m giving you my answer,” Junmyeon smiles at him.

“Okay,” Yixing says slowly. “So, I like you. And you like me. What now?”

Junmyeon chuckles and grabs Yixing’s hand. “That means we are lovers now, silly.”

“I like the sound of that,” Yixing beams at his boyfriend before pressing a small kiss on his lips.

“Now, boyfriend, time to get to work!” Yixing says as the car engine roars into life.

“I’ll go wherever you go, boyfriend!”

* * *

Elsewhere, Choongjae is worried. Junmyeon has not returned home in weeks. This is not the first time that Junmyeon has ran away from home but this is definitely the first time that he has been gone for a very long time.

Luckily, Junmyeon’s father is currently away on business overseas.

Choongjae stands up from his seat, determination filling him. He is going to start working hard to find Junmyeon.

* * *

After leaving the provision shop, Junmyeon voices out a question that has been bothering him for a while now.

“Yixing, where did you get all the money to buy so many food supplies?” Junmyeon lifts two heavy bags for emphasis.

“This is going to be hard to believe. I stole the money from a gang leader nicknamed ‘Dragon’,” Yixing replies with a smirk adorning his face.

“What? How did you steal from him?”

“There was this job that the Dragon assigned me to do. I was supposed to drive a truck filled with drugs and exchange it for heaps of cash at the meeting point. But I never went back to him with the money. Instead, I kept the money to myself and use it to buy supplies for the orphans.”

“I can’t believe you used to be part of a gang…”

“Well, I didn’t join them because I find them cool or anything. It’s just they burnt down the orphanage that we visited a few weeks ago. They burnt it for fun. And the orphanage used up all of its emergency fund to rebuild itself. That’s why the orphanage barely has any budget for health services.”

“Still, what you did is very dangerous, Yixing,” Junmyeon says seriously.

“I’m definitely going to get into trouble someday,” Yixing agrees.

“Yixing, I’m being serious!”

“What do you want me to do-” Yixing is about to retort when he senses movement behind him. He whips his head around and realize that the both of them are surrounded by a group of familiar hostile-looking people, each of them bearing a dragon tattoo on their upper left arm.

“The Dragon is very angry with you, Yixing,” a tall man with teal-coloured hair steps forward. “He wants to take back all the money that you stole from him. Plus interest.”

“T.O.P.” Yixing greets the Dragon’s secretary coolly. “I’m not going to return him the money.”

“Stubborn as always,” T.O.P. snaps his fingers. “Get him, boys.”

At once, all the gang members advance on Yixing but the latter has already expected them to attack. Yixing quickly deflects all their punches and kicks, and return them with his own but with tenfold the amount of strength. As more gang members start falling to the ground and moaning in pain, a voice calls out Yixing’s name.

“Stay where you are or this boy will die,” T.O.P. is pinning Junmyeon against his chest with an arm across his throat.

“I’m not some damsel in distress damn it!” Junmyeon lifts his right leg up to hit T.O.P. right on the face before elbowing him on the chest hard. Not satisfied, Junmyeon pulls T.O.P.’s hand and tosses him over his shoulder. “That should teach you for using me as a hostage!”

Laughing, Yixing drapes an arm around Junmyeon.

“Tell the Dragon that I ain’t scared of him. Let’s go, Junmyeon.”

Once they have arrived home, Junmyeon openly gasps when he spots blood dripping from Yixing’s bandaged hands.

“Yixing, you’re bleeding! You have to remove your bandages.”

Yixing tries to stop his boyfriend but it is too late.

“Yixing, what are these?” Junmyeon examines the scars on Yixing’s hands. Junmyeon traces his fingers on the scars that dot both of Yixing’s hands. “What happened?”

“I had an abusive father growing up,” Yixing says. “My father was a talented physician but one day, he accidentally prescribed a medicine to a sick child and that child passed away because the medicine was too strong for him. That incident drove my father insane. And he started beating me up for no reason. Then one day, he thought it was funny to dump burning hot oil on my hands. So, there you have it. The story behind these ugly scars.”

“They aren’t ugly, Yixing,” Junmyeon assures his boyfriend. “I think they’re beautiful. Just like you.”

They both share a deep lingering kiss.

“Junmyeon, do you love me?” Yixing asks after they release each other for air.

“I do,” Junmyeon answers, planting a kiss on his boyfriend’s nose.

“Would you…surrender your entire body to me?”

“Of course.”

That is all the consent that Yixing needs before he roughly grabs Junmyeon and plants him on the kitchen island. Within seconds, clothes are thrown all over the floor. Hands and mouths find each other. Whimpers and moans fill the kitchen. Junmyeon holds onto Yixing tightly as the latter thrusts mercilessly into him.

“You’re beautiful, Junmyeon,” Yixing says breathlessly.

“You’re beautiful too,” Junmyeon cries out.

“Thank you for loving me, Junmyeon.”

That night, for the first time since he received those scars, Yixing sleeps without wearing bandages around his hands.

* * *

For days, Choongjae has asked around in the places that Junmyeon frequents but to no avail. Deciding that he has reached a dead end, Choongjae heads to the local police station.

When he shows the officer on duty a picture of Junmyeon, he is surprised to see a look of recognition flashing across the officer’s face.

“I’ve seen him before!” Jongin exclaims. “He’s with an ex-convict. He is in great danger!”

“Are you serious?” Choongjae pales.

Jongin nods his head confidently. “I knew it! I knew it all along. He must have kidnapped Junmyeon for ransom!”

“Oh no! I have to save him!” Choongjae feels like his heart is about to burst out of his chest.

“No worries, sir. Let us both visit Yixing this instant and bring him to justice and save your lovely boy!”

There are series of loud knocks on Yixing’s door when the Chinese male is busy cleaning up the kitchen. He frowns when he finds Jongin and Choongjae behind the door.

When he sees Yixing, Choongjae lets out a loud gasp. “You’re the man Junmyeon was caught shoplifting with! I knew that you are quite shady!”

“What do you want?” Yixing cuts to the chase.

“Mr. Zhang Yixing, we have strong reason to believe that you have kidnapped this innocent young boy,” Jongin flashes a picture of Junmyeon. “Release him at once and please do not resist arrest.”

“What nonsense are you babbling about? I’ve told you the other day I didn’t kidnap Junmyeon! He’s my boyfriend!”

“Stop acting innocent! Aren’t you a murderer? You probably kidnapped Junmyeon to kill him, you sick bastard!” Jongin accuses.

“What the hell is going on?” Three heads turn to see Junmyeon walking in on their conversation.

“Yixing, you murdered someone? Is that true?” Junmyeon questions but Yixing stays silent.

“Yes, he killed someone. His own mother no less. You were probably his next target. That’s why he kidnapped you,” Jongin cuts in and retrieves a pair of handcuffs from his belt.

Junmyeon pushes Jongin away, “Hey! Yixing did not kidnap me and he’s certainly not planning to kill me! Now leave us both alone!”

“Junmyeon! Stop your childish behaviour this instant! I’m taking you home right now!” Choongjae reaches out to grab Junmyeon but the latter avoids him.

“I’m sorry, hyung,” Junmyeon sprays a can of pepper spray onto his bodyguard’s face.

“AAAAGHHH!” Choongjae screams as the irritating fluid scalds his eyes.

“You too! Let us go or I won’t hesitate to use this on you!” Junmyeon threatens Jongin who merely holds his hands up in surrender.

“Let’s go, Yixing!” Junmyeon grabs Yixing’s hand but the latter pulls away.

“Junmyeon, if you know the whole story, you would hate me,” Yixing breathes out.

“But I want to know. And I definitely won’t hate you,” Junmyeon briefly glances at Jongin who seems stupefied at the entire situation and his bodyguard who is currently crumpling in pain. “Let’s leave before things get really ugly.”

Luckily, Yixing lets himself be led by Junmyeon into his car, and they drives off, with no specific destination in mind.

* * *

“Junmyeon, do you really want to know the whole story?” Yixing breaks the silence that has reigned the car for the past fifteen minutes.

“Of course.”

“Do you promise that you won’t hate me?”

“Yixing, I love you so much. I would never hate you. I’m sure you did it for a reason.”

“Very well then. First, let’s make a short stop at the florist.”

* * *

Yixing gently places a bunch of white orchids on his late mother’s grave.

“After my father has gone insane and gotten his license as a physician revoked, he started abusing me and my mother. I was still studying in Woojoo University then. I returned home that day and found my mother in a pool of blood, lifeless and my father with his knees pulled to his chest while holding a bloody knife. My father accidentally killed my mother in a fit of rage. And he was terribly scared. So, I took the rap for him. I was sentenced to jail for five years for involuntary manslaughter. When I got out of jail, I returned to the university but everyone there treated me like I was a criminal. And yeah I kinda was. Except for Mr. Lin. He was the only one who cared enough to know the full story. The board of directors even sent me a personal letter to drop out of the university so I did. I never planned to continue my education there and anywhere else because which university would accept an ex-convict like me? When I returned home, my father’s condition has gotten better, thanks to a helpful neighbour. He feels guilty for ruining my life so I decided to move out of the house into a smaller apartment. I didn’t want to laze around doing nothing so I got my butt off and helped around the orphanages, giving them free and high quality medical services with the help of Mr. Lin. And, there you have it. My life story.”

“I bet you hate me now. I don’t blame you-oof!” Yixing lets out a loud gasp when Junmyeon attacks him with a bone-crushing hug.

“I’m so sorry, Yixing! I had no idea you led such a difficult life!” Yixing feels Junmyeon’s tears wetting his shoulder. Laughing softly to himself, Yixing hugs his boyfriend back and gently caresses his hair.

“It was difficult. But you came into my life and made it all worthwhile. And I’m grateful for that,” Yixing smiles down at his boyfriend. “The thing is, I feel like I want to do something. Be a part of something bigger. But I don’t know what.”

“I know what you can do,” Junmyeon wipes his tears. “You should continue your education.”

“Junmyeon, did you listen to what I said? No university would ever want to take me in.”

“I’ll help you, Yixing! I’ll gather as many commendations as I can from the professors to give a good word in for you.”

“You’ll do that for me, Junmyeon?”

“Of course! Anything for my boyfriend!”

* * *

Choongjae carefully dabs a piece of wet tissue paper onto his ailing eyes. Thankfully, the pain in his eyes has lessened though his vision is slightly blurry. He then hears the front door being opened and rushes downstairs, thinking that it is Junmyeon.

“Ah Choongjae.”

“Mr. Kim. Welcome back. How was work overseas?”

“Everything went well,” Mr. Kim gives a distracted reply before his eyes dart around the house nervously.

“Sir? Is everything alright?”

“Everything is fine. I’m just wondering where is my son?”

“He hasn’t returned home yet,” Choongjae says one half of the truth. Mr. Kim does not need to know the other half.

“I see. During my trip, I did some thinking. And I think that Junmyeon is right. I’ve been a very bad father. And husband,” Mr. Kim adds the last sentence with a twinge of guilt in his voice. “Maybe if I had spent time with my family more often, my wife wouldn’t have been so hasty to reach home to cook for me. Besides, Junmyeon is the only one I have left. I can’t afford to lose him either.”

“What do you want me to do, sir?”

Mr. Kim places a hand on Choongjae’s shoulder. “Please tell Junmyeon to come home quickly. Tell him that his father wants to apologize and that he wants to have dinner with him.”

“Sure, Mr. Kim. I’ll do whatever it takes,” Choongjae assures the older man.

* * *

“Thank you, Mr. Luo!” Junmyeon gives a deep, respectful bow before leaving the professor’s office. Junmyeon grins at the piece of paper that he is holding. It was tough but he has managed to convince ten professors to give their signed commendations for Yixing to apply in Woojoo University again. He inserts the application form into the labelled box and silently prays that Yixing would be accepted into the university.

Junmyeon is taking the usual route to Yixing’s house when suddenly, he is surrounded by three hostile-looking men, all donning a familiar dragon tattoo.

“What do you want?” Junmyeon frowns at them. “Get out of my way!”

“You’re coming with us.”

Two of them lunge forward and quickly pin Junmyeon’s hands to his sides.

“What the hell? Let me go!”

A soaked cloth is pressed on Junmyeon’s mouth and in a few seconds, he feels dizzy and his vision starts to blur before he blacks out.

* * *

There is a loud knock on the door and Yixing hurries to open it, thinking that it is Junmyeon. He is touched by his boyfriend’s gesture to complete the application form for him and for going out of his way to find professors to sign a commendation for him.

“Oh. It’s you,” Yixing’s face falls when he finds Choongjae behind the door. “Are you trying to get me arrested again?”

“I’m sorry that our last meeting didn’t go so well,” Choongjae apologizes. “I shouldn’t have jumped into conclusions and assume that you are posing harm to Junmyeon.”

“It’s fine. Apology accepted,” Yixing waves him off before his eyes catch an item on doorstep. It is a brown manila envelope addressed to him. Wonder who would send it to him?

Yixing picks the envelope up and quickly unseals it to pour out its contents to the table. Both Yixing and Choongjae gasp in horror when they see photographs of Junmyeon being tied up and gagged with a bomb strapped to his chest.

“Oh my God! What happened to Junmyeon?” Choongjae trembles in fear.

“He’s been kidnapped,” Yixing tries to maintain his cool. He picks up a signed letter that has a familiar dragon insignia and reads it. “By the Dragon.”

“The Dragon? The gang leader? What business does he want with Junmyeon?” Choongjae swivels his head to give a suspicious glance at Yixing. “Or with you?”

“I owe him some money. And now he’s using Junmyeon as a hostage to lure me out.”

“Money is no issue. I’ll take care of it.”

“Money is definitely not the issue here. Junmyeon’s safety is! Even if we give the Dragon what he wants, there’s no guarantee that he would let Junmyeon free!”

“You have a good point. So, what do we do now?”

Yixing racks his brain, sweat beading on his forehead. “I have a plan.”

* * *

Junmyeon feels fear and panic brewing inside of him as he feels the bomb ticking loudly in his ears. 50 minutes till it explodes. A million thoughts race through his head. The loudest one are: What if he won’t survive this? and What if he’ll never see Yixing ever again?

“Calm down, baby doll,” a smooth, velvety voice sounds from beside Junmyeon. The voice belongs to none other than the Dragon himself, Kwon Jiyong. “Everyone is going to die someday. The real mystery is how we are each going to die. Yours just happen to be in a bomb explosion.”

At that moment, a truck barges into the warehouse, hitting two gang members who are guarding the entrance and throwing them to the floor. The truck driver seems to care less and just drives over the unconscious gang members, the sickening sound of bones cracking echoing in the warehouse.

“Who’s there?” Jiyong yells out. “No funny games or I will push the trigger!”

“It’s me,” Yixing slams the door shut and walks forward but stops in his tracks when Jiyong threateningly holds out the trigger.

“Where’s my fucking money?”

“Over here,” Yixing retrieves a briefcase from the truck and throws it at Jiyong’s direction. Catching it, Jiyong quickly opens the briefcase and gives a grin when he finds wads of cash piled neatly on top of each other. He hastily proceeds to count them, putting the bomb trigger on the floor beside him.

“Are you okay?” Yixing starts to untie Junmyeon. “I’m sorry. It’s all my fault that you got kidnapped.”

“I’m fine. And it’s okay,” Junmyeon kisses Yixing on the lips before glancing down at the bomb strapped to his chest.

“I don’t know how to remove it,” Yixing is at a loss.

“It’s okay. I do,” Junmyeon quickly removes the bomb vest and Yixing lets out a shout of panic.

“Won’t it explode?”

“It won’t. Because there’s no trigger in the vest. I overheard some of the gang members mentioning it,” Junmyeon sighs in relief as he is released from the bomb. “Did you come alone?”

“I came with Choongjae. He is outside right now. He’s taking care of all the gang members outside,” Yixing grabs Junmyeon’s hand urgently. “Come on let’s get the hell out of here!”

The both of them only manage to run a few steps forward before being obstructed by Jiyong.

“Tricking me with fake money? You’re going to die for that!” Jiyong screams as he is about to push on the trigger. Yixing quickly tackles the gang leader to the ground, and the bomb trigger falls a few feet away from them.

“Junmyeon, get the hell out of here!” Yixing yells as he throws a few hard punches on Jiyong’s face.

“Not without you!”

“Damn it, Junmyeon! Choongjae!” Yixing calls out before receiving a harsh kick on the back by Jiyong.

In a few seconds, the bodyguard comes running into the warehouse. He lets out a soft gasp when he witnesses Yixing fighting with the gang leader while Junmyeon is merely watching the scene a few feet from them with fear in his eyes.

“Take Junmyeon and get him out of here!” Yixing yells out when he notices Choongjae.

“Yixing no!” Junmyeon is about to walk forward when Choongjae scoops him up and throws him over his shoulder. “Let me go!”

“None of us are going to make it alive,” Jiyong grits his bloody teeth.

“You’re so right,” Yixing pushes Jiyong off him and makes a grab for the bomb trigger.

Hesitating, Yixing stands up and turns around to yell his final words at Junmyeon.

“Kim Junmyeon!” Yixing calls out and Choongjae pauses in his tracks while holding a wide-eyed Junmyeon. “I love you! You’re the best thing to ever happen to my life! But I’m afraid now is goodbye.”

“Yixing, what the fuck are you talking about?” Junmyeon struggles wildly in his bodyguard’s hold. “Don’t be stupid!”

“This is the only way. And please do me a favour,” Yixing says. “Tell my father that I forgive him.”

“Yixing, stop! It doesn’t have to be like this!” Junmyeon cries out.

“And one final favour. Junmyeon, please live for the both of us,” Yixing feels himself being tackled by Jiyong as the gang leader wrestles for the bomb trigger. “GET OUT NOW!”

Not needing to be told twice, Choongjae makes a break for the exit, all while steadying Junmyeon on his shoulder. Once they have reached outside, Choongjae dives for cover while making sure that Junmyeon is underneath him. That is when the bomb detonates, and the entire warehouse explodes, crumbling into pieces.

“YIXING NO!” Junmyeon sobs uncontrollably. “I didn’t even get to say goodbye…”

* * *

_Epilogue_

It has been a few months since Yixing’s funeral and Junmyeon finally finds himself standing in front of Yixing’s grave. Junmyeon slowly sinks to his knees to place a bunch of purple lilies on the ground.

“Yixing-ah, how are you? I’m sorry for not visiting you earlier. To tell you the truth, I was afraid to face you. I blame myself for your death. If I had not been kidnapped, you wouldn’t have…” Junmyeon pauses to control his tears. He takes a few deep breaths before continuing, “Anyway, Choongjae-hyung convinced me that it’s not worth it to keep blaming myself. My father has made it a point to have dinner with me every day. He was worried sick when he found out that I was kidnapped and almost died. He cherishes me a lot now. I visited your father a week after your funeral and I told him that you forgave him. He cried and he regrets being a horrible father to you and for ruining your future and life. But I told him that you didn’t think of him that way and that you don’t hold it against him. I’m sure that’s what you would’ve said to him. And my father and I made a donation to the orphanage we often visited and they are able to afford quality medical services for the orphans now. We even bought some new furniture to replace the old ones. I also visit them once in a while to help out. School is going well too. Oh! Which reminds me…”

Junmyeon reaches inside his bag to retrieve a white envelope. He then removes a letter from inside and unfolds it before reading out, “This is to certify that Mr. Zhang Yixing is a full-time student of the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree program. Mr. Zhang Yixing has been admitted to the Class of 2017 and will commence his studies in August 2017 and is estimated to complete the program in August 2022.”

Junmyeon smiles softly as he caresses Yixing’s gravestone. “Your application was successful. Isn’t that wonderful?”

**~END~**

 


End file.
